Arriving in London

Hello Readers! It has been four days since I have had internet access, so rather than writing one big post, I will be dividing it up by days.

January 15th and 16th:

I was relieved to find my friend, Maddy, waiting at the gate for our flight to London. To our advantage, there were 30 open seats on the plane, so we were able to sit next to each other. It was a good thing I had her there because our flight was TERRIBLE. With the exception of the two hour movie I watched, my mind was constantly consumed with devising plans of how to escape the plane if we were to crash into the ocean. Not a minute would go by without turbulence. With that being said, I was not able to get a wink of sleep, and I woke up with sore forearms the next morning from gripping the armrests so tight.

When we finally landed I was able to relax a bit, but I knew the hardest part of our travels was yet to come. Rather than taking the Heathrow Express for around 30 US dollars, we decided to take the Underground tube, which only set us back about 6 US dollars. The trip was a bit longer, but we managed to make it to a nearby station that was only a 10 minute cab drive from our dorm. Walking out of the station and seeing the London sky for the first time, was incredible. I took in a deep breath of fresh air and soaked it all in. Even though I had not slept for close to 20 hours, I was wide awake and jumping in my boots with excitement.

That excitement soon died when I opened the door to my new dorm. We were told ahead of time that everything would be provided for us, but while I was looking around my new room I realized there were no towels, no toilet paper, no hangers, no wifi, and sheets that resembled tissue paper– but that's a stretch. Tissue paper is probably more comfortable– I guess I shouldn't be complaining, because I do have my own room and bathroom...but still, you would think they would have warned us ahead of time so we knew to bring our own things. But I made it work. We ran out to the closest store and were able to pick up some of the essentials. My room is still not as "homie" as I would like it to be, but that will come with time.

My tiny bed with sandpaper-like sheets...

After unpacking, running to the store, and finding our way around the borough of Islington we were exhausted and overwhelmed. To cheer us up, we decided to find a little comfort of home by ending our long day of travel with a McDonalds cheeseburger. And that cheeseburger couldn't have tasted any better.

Pre- departure anxiety.

Alright, first post. Here it goes...

It is currently 10:00 p.m. here in Illinois – on the night before my departure to London – and I am relieved to say that I have finally reached a level of clarity. For the past week I have been stressed out of my mind trying to tie everything together, but as of five minutes ago my checklist is complete. 

The biggest problem I thought I was going to run into was packing. Not that I am an avid traveler, but on my small trips to Florida I would always tend to over-pack. According to American Airlines, over-packing is worthy of punishment. To check a second bag on the airplane would have cost me a whopping $70.00. Do you realize all the other things I could be doing with $70.00 in Europe? That right there may be my ticket to Paris! But seriously...packing four months of clothes, shoes and accessories in one bag sounds impossible for anyone. 

But I did it. 

Before: 

After: 

(A special thanks to Kevin and Becky Monahan for the GIGANTIC suitcase and travel tips! ) 

With packing out of the way, there wasn't much left for me to do today besides organize my itinerary, spend time with my mother, and work on getting the butterflies out of my stomach– or should I say my head. 

Unfortunately, I developed a nauseating headache this afternoon. Every time I would get up, I found myself unable to walk in a straight line. I was dizzy, cold, and uncomfortable. What if I was coming down with something the night before my trip? Just my luck, I thought. But by the time I got into the car for dinner, Becky assured me it was probably just some travel anxiety. She said she gets it all the time. 

I don't know if it was so much anxiety, but definitely nervousness. My trip to London had always seemed so far away. No matter how much time had passed, the feeling of actually leaving my life here never fully set in. I'll admit, no matter how excited I am, I am definitely nervous. How could I not be? I am moving to a different country, changing schools, eating different foods, completely living on my own dime, and on top of all of that I have to worry about making new friends! 

But even though I am nervous, I have never been more anxious or excited for anything in my entire life. Everyone keeps telling me "Katie, you are going to have the time of your life. Enjoy every minute of it," and that is exactly what I plan on doing. I am ready to start a new adventure...it has been a while since I have had one, and I think this one has come at the perfect time. 

London, here I come!